As a holistic nutrition coach, when I see the downright horrible diet advice that people are given or read on “health” sites or magazines, it makes me seethe.

No wonder 7 out of 10 of us are sick, overweight, and medicated.

And one of the biggest problems is that many sources of this dreadful advice appear to be credible!

For example, I once read an article by a registered dietician (RD) that claimed artificial sweeteners are helpful for weight loss, demonized all saturated fats in favor of vegetable oils and margarine, and praised the “Impossible Burger” (which is made with GMO yeast) as a healthful alternative to beef.

Never mind that artificial sweeteners are linked to numerous diseases, vegetable oils and margarine stir up inflammation which raises your risk of heart disease, and the safety of GMO foods is highly questionable (personally I’d rather eat an old shoe).

It gets worse if you ask your doctor.  I’m not criticizing, but let’s face it—they take one basic nutrition course in 4 years of medical school, so how could they possibly give sound advice?  Plus, many of them refer their patients to dieticians, so re-read the 2 paragraphs above.

But lo and behold, the biggest example of horrible diet advice I’ve seen is…

Choose My Plate!

Ah yes, you would think that the US Department of Agriculture would provide smart, reliable nutritional guidelines for Americans, but you would be wrong.

Here’s why.

The method to my madness

I went on the USDA’s site (choosemyplate.gov) and entered my details (age, sex, height, weight and physical activity level) in the “My Plate Plan” section.

The first thing I noticed is that there are only 3 choices for an activity level—under 30 minutes a day of moderate activity, 30-60 minutes a day, and over 60 minutes a day—with no options for activities that are less or more intense than “moderate.”

I chose the “Over 60 minutes a day” category and the program told me I needed to keep my intake to 2,000 calories a day to maintain my weight.

HUH?

First, I don’t count calories.  I eat nutritious foods until I am full—it’s that simple.  But even if I did, I burn 1,000 calories in my 10-mile runs, and a good 500-600 or more in a karate or kickboxing workout.  There is no way in the world 2,000 calories a day would sustain me.

And conversely, if my activity level was light, chances are good that 2,000 calories may be too much for my needs.

Now let us look at…

The food recommendations—hang on to your hat!

The first thing that jumped out at me was the fact that Choose My Plate regurgitates the same old outdated (aka downright WRONG) advice about limiting all saturated fats in favor of vegetable oils and margarine.

Let me reiterate this point: YOUR BODY NEEDS SATURATED FATS (from natural sources)!  That is if you want hormones, to produce vitamin D and to ward off depression, among other things. Plus, your heart relies on saturated fats during times of stress.

The only saturated fat you should avoid at all cost is trans-fats (partially hydrogenated vegetable oils)—found in processed foods, fast food, and packaged pastries.  In 2018, the FDA banned the use of partially hydrogenated oils in most processed foods, but the ban has not been fully implemented yet.

The next boner was the recommendation for 6 servings of grains per day.  While they stressed to make half of my grain intake whole grains, ALL grains turn to sugar upon digestion, and it is sugar (NOT saturated fats) that triggers arterial inflammation and causes heart disease, as well as messes up your gut microbiome balance and feeds cancer cells!

Note that 6 servings of grains can mean 6 slices of bread, anywhere from 3 to 6 cups of breakfast cereal (depending on the type), or 3 cups of pasta or rice per day.

Sorry, but I don’t find anything “healthy” about that.

Additionally, they suggested limiting my “added sugar” intake to 50 grams—which is 4 tablespoons!  I can’t think of any reason why someone should take in 4 tablespoons of sugar every day. 

Plus “added sugar” is only the sugar you see on a food or beverage label or in your kitchen sugar bowl.  It doesn’t include the sugar that those 6 servings of grains you’re eating turn into.

I also noted they made no mention of beverages, aside from telling me to drink up to 3 cups of fat-free milk a day.  What about water, guys? 

Lastly, the meals they suggest that people eat are so terribly combined that they practically guarantee gas, bloating, constipation and heartburn—certainly contributing to our dismal states of health.

Want the best advice?

If you want the best advice to help prevent disease, maintain a healthy bodyweight, and quite possibly lead a medication-free existence, here are 3 truly effective strategies that you can trust from your friendly holistic nutrition coach that can help support YOUR health from head to toe:

1- Eat real food and support good digestion

When your diet is comprised of wholesome real foods you:

• Automatically eliminate trans-fats and artificial sweeteners
• Get good sources of antioxidants
• Get natural sources of crucial nutrients

And when you have sound digestion, this helps minimize waste accumulation in your blood, which cuts off a major source of inflammation! 

So stay away from processed, packaged and fast foods of all kinds and keep it real—fruits, vegetables, meats, eggs, full fat dairy and good fats (butter, olive oil, coconut oil) --NEVER margarine. 

Also, structure your meals to help encourage better digestion--my Great Taste No Pain system can help you here. 

Great Taste No Pain will show you what foods to pair together to ease the stress on your GI tract and help pave the way for comfortable, pain-free digestion and regular BMs!

2- Balance your microbiome

The friendly flora in your gut microbiome helps your body digest starches and fibers, supports regular BMs and houses 80 percent of your immune system…but they can only do so when there’s a strong enough population of them!

Unfortunately, people who have diets high in processed foods, soda and grains have fed the harmful microbes in their guts...and are likely looking at a serious flora imbalance as a result.

Plus, medication use (especially antacids and antibiotics), stress and lack of sleep can make your microbiome topsy-turvy. 

The best way to help restore a proper gut flora balance is with a full-spectrum probiotic formula like Super Shield.

Super Shield has been helping to create healthy guts all over the world for 11 years!    

3- Embrace the natural anti-inflammatory power of turmeric

Turmeric is emerging as a shining star with over 12,000 peer-reviewed studies attesting to its effectiveness in combatting inflammation and helping to create health!  Here are just some of its impressive benefits:

• It has outperformed aspirin and ibuprofen in terms of reducing inflammation.
• It can help slow or prevent blood clots.
• It has been more effective than NSAIDs in easing arthritis pain, without the risk of GI bleeding or other side effects of NSAIDs!
• It can boost skin health, promote smooth, glowing skin and help with psoriasis.
• It has anti-cancer properties and can be helpful with prostate and pancreatic cancers, as well as breast, bowel, stomach, and skin cancers.
• It can help combat obesity by reducing growth of fat cells.
• It fights depression and has even been shown to be as effective as Prozac in easing depressive symptoms—with NO side effects!
• It has been shown to be more effective than Metformin against Type 2 diabetes.
• It encourages healthy cholesterol levels—without dangerous statins!

If you are ready to get on the turmeric bandwagon, then this is the perfect time to try our Optimal Turmeric Blend!

Optimal Turmeric Blend provides a soothing, supportive 750 mg of pure, organic turmeric in every 2-capsule dose, plus black pepper extract to support maximum absorbency.

Now you have real advice on how to create health and quite possibly say goodbye to excess weight and medications for good. 

To your health,

Sherry Brescia